Massage Questions And Answers

In my daily interactions with my students, either in live courses or the long distance video courses, certain questions keep surfacing. So I am creating a space for answering them based on my experience.

Q: Your site’s name is Thai Healing Massage. Is this the same thing as Thai Massage?
A: No, it’s not. I use Thai Healing Massage an an umbrella name for several modalities that are part of the family of bodywork that I have created, i.e. Thai Massage, Heavenly Head Massage, Abdominal Massage, Thai Rocking Massage and Thai Massage therapy. It all started with Thai Massage and then evolved from there, hence the name.

Q: Is your style of Thai Massage the same as the traditional style that is being taught in Thailand?
A: No, I am more of a creative healing artist than a follower of tradition. Traditional Thai Massage has its strengths and also some weak points. I filled in those weak areas with other techniques. For example Thai Massage lacks good abdominal techniques. So I use Chi Nei Tsang techniques instead.

Thai Massage also does not have a big repertoire of neck moves, so I use techniques from my Heavenly Head Massage system. Traditional Thai Massage is often quite mechanical, so I added elements of yoga, energy work and intuitive healing processes. My students tell me that those improvements resulted in an advanced system that they cannot find elsewhere in Thailand.

Q: What is your Thai Rocking Massage?
A: Thai Massage uses a lot of direct, linear pressure. This can sometimes be quite painful, especially for sensitive persons, and has caused the perception in many people that Thai Massage is a painful system of massage.

My answer to this was to replace most of the direct, linear pressure techniques with more flowing rocking techniques. They are more effective since they utilize more motion, they are totally painless, and they feel great.

Q: Can you actually learn massage from a video course?
A: Based on the feedback I am getting from my students, the answer is definitely YES. I send out questionnaires at the end of my online courses. One of the questions is how easy it is to learn the techniques from my videos. So far nobody has reported that they had a hard time learning it.

I have made great efforts to make my videos resemble an actual classroom and go into such detail that anyone can learn the techniques. Check out this article for more details on this subject.

Q: How are your videos different from the hundreds of massage videos out there?
A: I have watched countless massage videos online. Many suffer from one or more of the following:

• Some just show massage techniques for the fun of it or for artistic effects but do not really teach anything.
• Others attempt to teach but the speed is too fast or there is not enough detail to really learn much.
• Some are just not organized and structured enough.
• The audio and the quality of some videos is not good enough to learn from them.
• Then there are big massage DVDs that dump a ton of techniques on you, but then you are left alone with all the information without any follow up or support or learning environment.

I have solved all those issues in my videos. The setting is just like in a real massage classroom, the speed is slow enough that you can follow easily, it is highly detailed, the progression is methodical and logical, there is full support via email, forum or even telephone, and every technique is shown very clearly.

Q: All your videos show you working on a floor mat. Can Thai Healing Massage courses be done on a table?
A: I live in Thailand, and massage is mostly done on floor mats. This applies to Thai Massage and even oil massage. The truth is I don’t own a table since I do not need one. I much prefer working on a mat.
However all my courses can be applied to a table. This might require modification of some techniques.

I have done a lot of Heavenly Head Massage work on a table when I worked in a spa setting. In the case of Thai massage I really prefer working on the floor since it allows you to use your body weight more effectively, but many western massage therapists use tables in their practice.

Abdominal massage can very easily be done on a table. Most of the Thai Rocking Massage techniques work on tables, but not all of them. If you prefer table work, just use the techniques that work well in this setting and skip the ones that don’t.

Q: How does Thai Massage effect the health of the therapist?
A: If you work on a floor mat, Thai Massage allows you to work ergonomically in an almost ideal way since you can easily get on top of the client and use your body weight to its full advantage. You never have to lean over while straining your back muscles like on a massage table.

However the way how Thai Massage is practiced a lot here in Thailand involves a lot of linear sustained pressure that can be really hard on thumb and wrist joints. In my style I have eliminated this issue by replacing linear pressure with round and flowing motions like rocking and circling. My style of bodywork is about as friendly to the therapist’s body as is humanly possible. I had to learn this lesson the hard way in the beginning of my career.

Q: Where did you learn all your techniques?
A: Initially I studied primarily Thai Massage here in Thailand. Like most therapists who have a passion for their work, I developed a highly creative and intuitive streak and developed many techniques on my own. This led to my creation of totally unique modalities like Heavenly Head Massage and Thai Rocking Massage.

Q: Thai Massage has a bit of a seedy reputation in some places, especially in Europe. How do you react to that?
A: It is a fact that here in Asia there are many opportunities to get a “happy end” tacked on to your massage if you are looking for this kind of thing. It is also true that quite a few Thai women have exported this to other countries.

But look at it this way: The fact that there is prostitution in the world does not prevent us from looking for genuine and satisfying relationships. The fact that there are crooks and cheaters in the business world does not tarnish the image of honest and good businesses. The fact that knives can and are being used to kill people does not make you feel bad about using them to butter your bread.

Most things in life can be used for more than one purpose, and that goes for massage as well, and not just for Thai Massage. Professional massage and happy end massage run on two totally separate tracks, and they do not have to cross paths.

This has never been an issue for me in my over 12 years of massage practice. If your energy and intentions are clean and professional, people will know and respect that, and you will attract clients who resonate with your energy. I am not on a crusade about those who use massage in non-professional ways and whose intentions are different from mine.

Q: In my practice I find that I cannot get many clients interested in Thai Massage. What is your take on that?
A: I have heard this argument, but I have to say that the real message coming through is this: “My Thai Massage is just not good enough and therefore I cannot convincingly attract clients to it.”

I can only tell you from my personal experience that if you really learn Thai Massage well, you will never have a lack of clients and you will make a name for yourself as the therapist with the magical touch. I can teach you how to do that.

Q: What’s so special about Heavenly Head Massage?
A: In pretty much every single session that I have ever done in this modality, my clients were transported into another level of consciousness, like in a deep meditation. They often tell me that they have never before experienced such deep levels of trance-like relaxation. The secret is that this modality combines bodywork with energy techniques. It is so gentle and non invasive and profound that clients absolutely love it. I really does feel heavenly!

Q: What’s the difference between your Thai Massage course and your Thai Massage therapy courses?
A: The main course covers the entire body and is suitable for beginners or experienced therapists who want to expand their skills.The therapy courses focus more in depth on specific areas and are meant for therapists who have already studied the basics of Thai Massage.

Q: Do you also do live training besides your video courses?
A: Yes I do. I mostly work with students who have already taken the video training, since then the live training is much more effective and takes less time.

Q: Is your abdominal massage course identical to Chei Nei Tsang?
A: No. Full Chi Nei Tsang training takes quite some time and is highly specific. I modified my abdominal massage course so that it can be learned in a short period of time. It is a simplified Chi Nei Tsang version that makes it more accessible, less expensive and easy to integrate with Thai Massage.

Q: What is Chi Nei Tsang?
A: Chi Nei Tsang is a therapy that works exclusively on the abdomen. It is also called internal organs massage and was popularized by Mantak Chia who has his main center not far from where I live in Thailand. Chi Nei Tsang differs from Shiatsu abdominal work. It works directly on the actual location of the organs whereas Shiatsu uses a map of reference points that are correlated with certain organs but are not in the actual location of the organ.

Mantak Chia’s style is an exclusive style, i.e. it is a standalone session where oil is used to work directly on the skin. My style does not use oil and can be applied through clothing. It is designed to be integrated easily with Thai Massage or Thai Rocking Massage, but it can also be used as a stand-alone therapy.

Q: I had a Thai Massage session once and it was very painful. Is that normal?
A: Absolutely not! It is only painful if the therapist is insensitive and works in a mechanical way. I use a system that makes sure that the client never experiences strong pain. Guaranteed!

That being said, there is a difference between good pain and bad pain. Good pain happens when stiff muscles or joints are challenged to open up, but the degree of this ‘good’ pain should never exceed the ability of the client to relax into it. Good pain feels releasing and is quickly getting less intense.

Bad pain however is sharp, feels damaging and does not lessen in intensity. This should never be experienced in a massage session.